Roofing fabric and method of



(No Model.)

O. M. WARREN.

ROOFING FABRIC AND METHOD OF APPLYING THE SAME.

No. 291,440. Patented Jan. 1,1884.

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u. PUERS. Pvmwumo n har, Washington uc tries.

oynns M. WARREN, or BROOKLINE, MASSACHUSETTS.

.ROQFINGJFABRIC AND METHOD OF APPLYING THE SAME.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 291,440, dated January1, 1884,

Application filed March 20. i883. (X0 model.)

To all whom it wmy concern:

Be it known that I, CYRUS M. IVARRrJN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Brookline, in the county of Norfolk and State ofMassachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inRoofing Fabrics and in the Method of Applying the Same, of whichv thefollowing is a specification.

. My invention relates to improvements in the so-called ready roofing,composed of either two or more layers of saturated paper or felt or ofpaper or felt and cloth cemented together, in a machine, with anadhesive water proof cement, and the objects of my improvements are,first, to provide a reliable joining of the sheets upon the roof thatwill admit of expansion and contraction without damage; second, toprovide safer means of fastening thefabric to the roof-boards, wherebyits liability to suffer injury by shrinkage, either of itself or theboards, will be overcome or greatly diminished; and, third, to lessenits cost and the expense of application. I attain these objects byconstructing the fabric as illustratec in the accompanying drawings. 7

In Figure 1 I have shown a cross-section of a single sheet of the fabriccomposed of three layers of felt, a a a, and two layers of adhesivecement, b I), between the points a d, and two thicknesses of felt andtwo layers of the cement between the points 61 d and the points a c, anda layer of thin Manila or other strong paper, 0 e, or its equivalent,between the points a f and the points d g. It will be ob, served that bythis construction or arrange ment of the different layers of feltthe oneon the other-J produce an article having bot-h edges two-ply or of twothicknesses of felt, while the main portion or body of the article isthree-ply or of three thicknesses of felt, so that when placed on theroof there will be four thicknesses of felt at the points where thefelts overlap, and the reduced or rabbeted edge of the felt will serveas a guide in laying the adjacent strip of felt. The felt employed inthe manufacture of the fabric maybe saturated with any of the materialsnow in use for I this purpose-ascoal-tar or a fluid or semifluidcompound of asphaltum and petroleum 5o residuum, &e.and for a cement tounite the layers of felt the ordinary coal tar pitch, or acompound ofsimilar consistency made of asphaltum and petroleum residuum, or othersuitable adhesive water-proof material may be employed.

Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional viewof a single sheet of the fabric, showingthe offsets or rabbets in the edges which constitute the lap. Fig. 2 isa cross-sectional view of two sheets,

showing their relative arrangement as applied to the roof. Fig. 3 is aView in elevation of the rolls between which the felts are coated withthe cement and formed into a single sheet. Fig. at is a view, partly inperspective and partly in section, of two layers of the completed fabricas applied to the roof, with the fastening devices for holding the samethereon. Fig. 5 is a view in perspective of a metallic clip for holdingthe edges of two adjoining sheets together.

In Fig. 2 I have shown a crosssection of two sheets of the fabricunitedms upon a roofby overlapping and interposing a layer of adhesivecement. The edge of the lap is still further secured by metallicfasteners, Fig. 5, inserted, as at M in Fig. 4, over the edge of the topsheet and under the upper layer of the bottom one, the whole beingsecured to the roof-boards by means of awire stretched along underthelap and fastened by staples, as shown at N, Fig. 4.

Instead of staples, strong nails may be employed, in which case thestretched wire is wound once around each of the nails, already partlydriven, along the line intended for the wire, and the driving of thenails then completed.

Instead of applying the wire fastening under the lap, as shown in thedrawings, it may be placed on the top, if preferred. Its object is toprotect the roofing against wind.

Instead of using saturated paper orfelt for the middle layer, a, dryManila or other strong paper or cloth may be substituted, and the stripsof Manila paper dispensed with. The advantages gained will be a strongerfabric, thinner edges, and a smoother roof-surface.

In carrying out my invention, iurespect t0 the manufacture of thefabric, I employ a machine in which the layers of cement are formedbetween the layers of felt by passing the latter downward between twoadjustable rollers revolving toward each other, and which, by.beingprovided with plates fitting closely against the ends, form a hopper,which contains the melted cement. Thethickness of the layers of cementretained between the layers of felt is controlled by increasing thespace between the rollers.

My improvement of this machine/to adapt,

it for making my fabric, consists in enlarging the diameters of therollers at opposite ends, as shown in Fig. 3, for a space between hiequal in width to the desired width of the lap, and in enlarged diameterequal to the difference between the thickness of the lap and that of themain body of the fabric.

The advantages gained by making the lap thinner than the main body ofthe fabric are the following, viz: It is morepliable, and there foreeasily held down by the metallic fastener M while the cement ishardening, thereby and in connection with the wire fastening overcomingthe objectionable necessity and extra cost of thickly nailing the outeredge of the lap one and one-half to two inches apart, as hithertopracticed, and forming a joint the parts of which are movable upon eachother, and thus admitting of expansion and contraction without danger ofloosening the joint or rupture of the fabric.

The use of wire to secure the fabric against wind is not only cheaper,but has also the great advantage over the close nailing that thefastenings of the wire (nails or staples) may be few and far between,admitting of comparatively free expansion and'contraction of the boards,and lessening greatly the liability to injury of the fabric from thiscause.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

l. A roofing fabric composed of three webs or layers of felt or othersuitable material cemented together with layers of water-proof cement,the outer layers of which are so arranged or disposed as to make thefabric of two thicknesses of felt at the edges, as set forth.

2. A roofing fabric composed of a series of layers of felt or othermaterial cemented together in the manner described, so as to leave aledge or rabbeted portion at both edges, the rabbeted portions havingcemented thereto a strip of Manilapaper or other thin material.

'3. Aroof the covering of which is composed of roofing-felt, the layersof felt being overlapped at the edges and secured to the roofboards bymeans of a wire or wires and staples or hooks, as set forth.

4. A fastening for the overlapping edges of a felt or fabric roofing,consisting of'a thin strip of metal bent at its center, so that thelower end can be placed on or within the un derlapping edge of the feltand the upper end placed over the overlapping edge of the felt, as setforth.

5. Aroof-covering composed of overlapping layers of felt, substantiallysuch as described, the overlapping edges of which are secured bymetallic straps and wires, substantially as de scribed.

6. In a machine for making roofing-felt, in which the edges are madethinner thanthe main portion, the rollers A B, the opposite ends of.which are made larger or of a greater diameter than the other portionsof the rolls, and mounted so as to leave a space between the enlargedportions and the opposite roll to admit of the passage of the thin edgesof the felt therethrough, as set forth.

7 CYRUS M. WARREN.

Yit n esses:

ALLEN LINCOLN, THos. J. HIND.

